SAN DIEGO — October is a daunting time for the 600,000 dreamers who have continued living and working in the U.S. without fear of deportation.
Something that many young immigrants living in the U.S. were unable to do before the Obama-era Program, but all of that could be stripped away in a matter of days.
“Immigrant workers are essential workers, if there’s something we learned in the pandemic is that during the most times of need immigrant were at the front of many industries,” said Francisco Peralta Vargas.
Vargas is one of the 40,000 San Diego dreamers who have been able to almost reach the American Dream.
Vargas migrated to the United States with his family from Mexico, since then, with help from the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program, Vargas has been able to work in San Diego.
His achievements have gone as far as earning a government position– working alongside San Diego city Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera.
However, Vargas and other dreamers are watching as the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals decides the program's future.
“When the DACA program came into place it opened many opportunities that were not open before,” said Vargas
The U.S. government has not been accepting new applications since last summer after a Texas judge ruled the Obama Administration illegally implemented the program.
It's not the first time the program has been in limbo, but this time, immigration attorneys say this is the biggest threat to DACA.
“This is very unfortunate, but the fifth circuit has a conservative leaning and most likely DACA will be eliminated by the time the decision is made. Most likely it could be made in the months of October, if not early November. This is terrifying to a lot of my clients,” said Narciso Cruz, an immigration attorney.
There are talks that the Biden Administration is likely to appeal the ruling, order of ending the program, but the conservative leaning Supreme Court may rule against DACA.
There are also reports that the White house is preparing to take executive action that could shield people from deportation.
“Congress could also give DACA recipients a path to legal permanent residency,” said Cruz.
However, with next month’s midterm elections, there are concerns nothing will happen until after the election—leaving many dreamers desperate for help until January.
Local immigration attorneys are recommending that you seek legal help to see if there are any other avenues to seek legalization.
They also advise DACA recipients who need to renew, that they do it now rather than later.
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